By Fletcher Word
\nThe Truth Editor<\/p>\n
The Reverend Jesse Jackon passed away on February 17, 2026, as his family announced:<\/p>\n
\u201cProfound sadness, the family of Reverend Jess Jackson, Sr. , an iconic figure in the fight for civil rights, international justice and human dignity, announces his passing,\u201d the family said in a statement released on the same day.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cOur father was a servant leader \u2013 not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless and the overlooked around the world,\u201d the statement continued. \u201cWe shared him with the world and, in return, the world became part of our extended family.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n His family shared the Rev. Jackson with the world for more than six decades, during which time he spent his life in numerous endeavors to advance equality, disrupt systems of oppression and ensure that voices of the poor, the oppressed and the underserved could be heard.<\/p>\n Jackson was born in1941 in Greensville, SC, to a teenaged mother and the married next-door neighbor. He attended public schools in Greenville and enrolled in the University of Illinois on a football scholarship. He transferred to North Carolina A & T State University and graduated in 1964. At A & T he was elected student body president and became active there in civil rights issues and demonstrations in Greensboro, NC.<\/p>\n After college Jackson began his theological studies at Chicago Theological Seminary and also started working in the Civil Rights Movement with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.<\/p>\n Jackson met Dr. King during the Selma movement in 1965 when he traveled South to lend support to the voting rights campaign. Jackson, with King\u2019s support, was later named to head the Operation Breadbasket in Chicago, the economic arm of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. In that position he organized boycotts and negotiations to secure jobs and contracts for Black workers and businesses.<\/p>\n Jackson was with Dr. King in 1968 when the latter was assassinated in Memphis. Afterwards he emerged as one of the key African American leaders in the Civil Rights movement and, in 1971, founded Operation PUSH \u2013 People United to Serve Humanity. That Chicago organization later evolved into the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, a national platform to advocate for voting rights, education equity, corporate accountability, labor rights, healthcare access and international human rights.<\/p>\n In the late 1970s Jackson\u2019s portfolio expanded as he became an unofficial mediator in international crises, traveling to various countries \u2013 Cuba, South Africa, Haiti, Iraq, and others \u2013 to push for prisoner release, democratic reforms and peace. He gained the release of some notable political prisoners during this time.<\/p>\n Then Rev. Jackson entered politics in 1984 seeking the Democratic presidential nomination and mounting a highly visible national campaign. He managed to secure hundreds of delegates and delivered a masterful speech at the Democratic convention.<\/p>\n Jackson\u2019s convention speech is widely regarded as one of the most influential political addresses of the 20th<\/sup> century, ranked among the top American political speeches for its eloquence and moral vision.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not a perfect party. We are not a perfect people,\u201d he said during that speech. \u201cYet, we are called to a perfect mission: our mission to feed the hungry; to clothe the naked; to house the homeless; to teach the illiterate; to provide jobs for the jobless; and to choose the human race over the nuclear race.\u201d<\/p>\n In 1988, Jackson once again ran for the Democratic nomination, winning several primaries and caucuses, earning nearly seven million votes nationwide, finishing second in delegate votes at one point in the race. His theme, building a \u201cRainbow Coalition\u201d gave him the chance to court a wide range of voters \u2013 farmers, working class whites, immigrants, laborers \u2013 and to reshape Democratic politics, setting the stage for Gov. Bill Clinton\u2019s victory four years later and Sen. Barack Obama\u2019s successful presidential campaign in 2008.<\/p>\n \u201cOur dreams must be stronger than our memories,\u201d Rev. Jackson said during his speech at the 1988 Democratic convention.<\/p>\n Later, well into the 2000s and 2010s, Jackson remained a force in American life, advocating for justice, equality and humanity.<\/p>\n Toledoans were provided a glimpse of his concern about racial injustice and social inequity in January 2019, when Jackson came to the Glass City to advocate for Black workers at the local General Motors plant \u2013 workers who had been the targets of racial harassment.<\/p>\n During a rally at The Sojourner\u2019s Truth offices, Jackson spoke with an audience of about 80 people, including GM employees, elected officials and local ministers during his two-hour stay in the Glass City \u2013 a reaction to the GM situation that has garnered attention in the national media. He had driven down to Toledo from Detroit where he had spent the previous day participating in MLK Day activities.<\/p>\n \u201cCowards must be found,\u201d he said of those GM workers who were hanging nooses and scribbling racial messages while concealing their identities and avoiding punitive measures.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Using his trademark technique of urging his audience to repeat his phrases, Jackson held his listeners\u2019 attention and involvement as he replied to those who voiced their grievances about harassment incidents they had experienced at local GM, Jeep and UPS worksites.<\/p>\n Jackson\u2019s visit to Toledo helped to resolve a number of issues such as racial harassment and fair pay with GM workers and also the helped to settle a civil suit between Ray Wood, then president of the Toledo NAACP and the former head of the union in the GM Powertrain plant, and GM management.<\/p>\n As usual, Jackson\u2019s presence and his commitment to social change brought a level of awareness to a community and a sense of urgency about finding solutions to social issues.<\/p>\n